NYC is full of great sights, and is one of the most popular cities to tourists in the world. Here’s my list of “most iconic sights”:

1. Statue of Liberty

There are lots of places to go in NYC, but there’s one thing that comes to mind when you think about New York. The Statue of Liberty. There are 377 steps to the top of the crown, the equivalent of a 20 story building, but the view is absolutely stunning and is definitely worth the climb. Even the view from the pedestal is super cool, so I guess that’s a way to save money. Ellis Island also provides a great view of the statue because it’s close enough that you can see almost every detail, but it’s far enough away that you can see the whole statue without moving your head. I LOVED IT!!!

Visiting the Statue of Liberty

Inside the Statue of Liberty

Statue of Liberty on a perfect day

Statue of Liberty on a perfect day

Statue of Liberty on a perfect day

In the crown of Lady Liberty

Visiting the Statue of Liberty

2. The Rooftops of Skyscrapers

If you love the amazing landscape views of the city like I do, then you’d love the Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center or the Freedom Tower. Both provide super cool views of downtown Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty with Ellis Island. Seeing the city at night with all the lights is super cool.

Up the Freedom Tower, NYC

Top of the Rock, NYC

Top of the Rock, NYC

3. 9/11 Museum

The 9/11 memorial and museum was a moving experience. They have a huge museum with lots of 9/11 artifacts about four stories underground, and within that museum, they have a walkthrough that has lots of videos and things that you can experience yourself. I definitely learned a lot about the experiences of individual people and how they were changed by the Al Qaeda crisis and 9/11.

9/11 Memorial

9/11 Memorial

4. American Museum of Natural History

The National History Museum in NYC was super cool with all the animals and dinosaur skeletons. They even had a huge blue whale!! When we first saw the whale, we all thought it was enlarged… but it wasn’t. I didn’t realize they were THAT big!!

Museum of Natural History, NYC

Museum of Natural History, NYC

Museum of Natural History, NYC

5. Times Square

Times Square has to make my list of iconic sights because it’s so huge. There are so many screens there that when you go to it at night, it feels like day. They have gigantic stores and people dressed up like Mickey Mouse or Spider-Man. There are people playing chess right in the middle of the sidewalks, in fact, even Sydney played chess!! I can’t really even explain it.

First night our in NY! Syd vs. Times Square chess champion

First night our in NY! Syd vs. Times Square chess champion

6. Brooklyn Bridge

The Brooklyn Bridge is a tall bridge from Manhattan to Brooklyn and it provides a super cool view of Manhattan. You can see all the important buildings in Manhattan plus the Statue of Liberty.

Brooklyn Bridge on a Seahawks Sunday

Brooklyn Bridge on a Seahawks Sunday

Brooklyn Bridge on a Seahawks Sunday

7. Central Park

Right smack in the middle of Manhattan is Central Park. 2.5 miles long and half a mile wide, this park is a great place to run or to bike. There are lots of bike rental shops around the park so there’s no problem renting a bike, which we did. We rode around the whole park and played on the large rocks.

Gorgeous day in Central Park

Gorgeous day in Central Park

There’s so much to do in New York and what I mentioned here is just a small fraction of what you can do. We were there for 9 days, and we spent all of our time in Manhattan, and just a tiny bit of that time was spent in Uptown Manhattan. I really hope to go back and visit some other areas there.

Q: How’d you get the picture of the rat??
A: I don’t know. We just saw it in the subway and my dad whipped out his phone to take a picture

Q: Did you get those M&M’s?
A: Yup. Christmas themed.

Q: What is your favorite Iconic Sight?
A: That is a very, very hard question to answer. They’re all good in different ways. If I had to choose one though, it would either be Times Square or the Freedom Tower.

Q: Did you like DC or NYC icons better?
A: (Why are your questions so hard to answer??) I liked them both. I can’t decide.